Shadowless
by symphonic-mess
Summary: They have a very fragile relationship when it comes to watching each other get hurt. Neither is willing to give in. And that, my friends, is because they love each other. Shen x Duo.
1. Chapter 1

**_Shadowless_**  
by _"Vi", the Symphonic Mess_

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**Disclaimer:** These characters don't belong to me. I am only an avid gamer who loves them strongly and enjoys playing with them both on the screen and in my writings. I get nothing out of it besides the joy of writing, squeeling and generally discussing with others how amazing they are.

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There are over a hundred offensive maneuvers and probably just as many defensive maneuvers meant specifically to get a person out of these kinds of positions. Hint: in a well calculated, well-fought situation in which a fighter is mentally and physically prepared, these things should not happen. And yet, dizzy from the sudden shift of momentum, the world seems a little less perfect and the moment seems isolated and trapped in stone the moment someone's foot instinctively shoots out towards their dizzy opponent; aiming right for their fragile rib cage with enough force to break a few. It feels a little ridiculous to think that the thoughts of the losing opponent might simply be that of awe and wonderment, before they black out completely from the erupting pain coming from their now obviously broken ribs.

It hadn't been planned at all, but it wasn't something that should have been lost. Pushing away the horrid idea of struggling to use his little remaining energy to open his eyes or lose any more of the air that was slowly coming back into his lungs after having been completely knocked breathless, Duo Lon contemplated the stupidity of his own actions sometimes.

Had he been less concerned with the speed of his actions and the thought of retaliating before the larger man knew what was happening and therefore gaining the advantage had slowly been losing to the man's brute force and yet, fairly quick movements. This had been the first opening he got, so he had been a little anxious to take the opportunity and thus he landed himself here, in a defeated pile. How disappointing, he scolded himself, aware that the fight was over and that he was no longer in danger of being further injured. But that also told him that he had to be prepared for the next hurdle; the blur of pink, blond and skin colored pigments running to him; now at his side. Telling Shen not to move so fast to avoid making him sick was not an option. That would only make him worry further. And he was sure that Shen needed no pushing in the paranoid direction when it came to his well-being.

Which was ridiculous when he considered the amount of stunts that the brute Shen himself pulled on a daily basis, making Duo worry. And whenever the black haired man opened his mouth to say something about it, the larger of the two would always cut him off with some smarmy remark about how it wasn't the same at all. Maybe in a fist fight, it wasn't. But in the instances when anything goes and the enemy was armed, it didn't matter how many muscles he had or how broad his shoulders were or how high he loomed over them, the result waiting for him would be the same. It took a lot of restraint not to let some biting remark slip, when he heard the too loud, buzzing sound of Shen's voice erupting in his ear. "This is over. I'm taking him home..." Duo wanted to shake his head no, but he was afraid of the motion itself.

Shen just had to say home, didn't he. Not to the nearest house, not to the hospital, but home. That would bode well. In his mind, Duo could almost see the incredulous faces of the people around him. And yet he felt himself being hauled up into Shen's strong arms, faster than he would have liked. But he couldn't deny how good it felt once he was up there, safe and secure with his face in the crook of Shen's shoulder, feeling how he practically melted into the other's larger frame content with the world and no longer bouncing. His arms were warm next to Duo's chilled skin, and he dug into that feeling, letting it sink in a bit further and healing the sick feeling.

His breath was slowly coming back to him, the longer he kept his mouth shut. But feeling the nausea of opening his mouth, he decided that now was no time for words. When he curled in just a certain way, he could feel what he expected to be a broken rib and winced, trying his best to remain exactly where he was. "You are really stupid, you know that?" Shen said softly, anticipating the way Duo probably felt right now. It felt pretty bad to be called stupid by someone he often scolded for being so dimwitted, and yet he felt like it should be dually noted. After all, he had made the mistake leading up to all of this, even if it felt slightly out of balance next to some of the blunders the other made, but he didn't feel particularly confident in arguing with him at the moment.

The only thing he seemed to be capable of was fisting the soft fabric of his fushia shirt in his hands and wimpering pitifully as his chest bounced lightly against Shen's with every soft but jerking step. It felt like it took forever, focusing on his closed eye-lids and practically counting the steps in fear of opening his eyes. The last look he took had caused his stomach to jerk violently at the violent, blurry shapes that were so far out of focus. There weren't even words to fill the space. Shen didn't seem to be in the lecturing mood this time. Maybe he did realize how much Duo actually beat himself up for his blunders. "Hey." Shen said, and finally the movements stopped. He was being lowered on to something warm and soft, but he found that he was being removed from Shen's arms and didn't like the sudden rush of air that indicated Shen leaving the room.

Now he was on a couch, or something like that. Feeling around with his legs, he realized that it was indeed the couch, but didn't get far into investigating comfortable positions before he felt strong hands turning him over; guiding him towards darkness and warmth. When he opened his eyes experimentally he noticed where Shen had gone. All the windows had been covered, dimming the room greatly, leaving the shadows darker and keeping out the glaring sunlight that hurt his dizzy eyes. "T-thank you." Duo said very softly, unsatisfied that he let himself stutter, even if it was only slight. It also hadn't come out as strong as he wanted, more like a pitiful whisper than a genuine response.

Shen let one hand gently stroke Duo's arm, and the other patted his head, playing with the soft, gorgeous hair he so loved. If he had his way, he would steal those obnoxious hair ties and have him leave it down all the time. "Are you going to tell me what happened out there?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Unlike other times, he was calm, almost relaxed, as he looked at his lover's fleeting dark orbs as he continued to strain his eyes to adjust.

What was there to say? "I don't think it'll make an ounce of difference, so no, I won't." Much better, he told himself, although the volume could still be better. He had concentrated on the loving, soothing patterns of Shen's hands rubbing him and had been able to instantly hear and feel a difference. He heard Shen sigh, but not much else. The lines were becoming clearer, and he could read Shen's expression much better now. It did indeed look much calmer than usual, but the lines of frustration were still evident; creasing his brow unnaturally. On Shen it was so obvious, because he was naturally such a carefree person when he wasn't in a fight with someone.

"I don't like repeating myself." Shen stated quite obviously for Duo. He never lectured the same thing twice, that was for sure, Duo noted, remembering all the different ways that Shen had gone about saying it. He tried the technical approach, the emotional approach, the desperate approach, the guilty approach... there couldn't be many left, Duo noted with a small upturning of the lip.

"You know me; I live for unnecessary procedures." This caused the lines of worry to erase themselves from Shen's forehead as he laughed quite genuinely, cradling Duo's head to his chest in an act of loving affection. Although it seemed dry and generally didn't sound humorous, he had learned to pick up the things that Duo said that were meant to make him laugh. Not only that, but he was actually starting to see how they were supposed to be funny. At first he had missed the subtle notes. Learning more about Duo and spending more time with him had increased his abilities a good deal. Now he noticed them the moment they were said.

"I love you." he said, still chuckling lightly as he rested his head on top of Duo's, rubbing his cheek into the soft hair there.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Shadowless_**  
by "Vi", the Symphonic Mess

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Disclaimer and Notes: These characters don't belong to me. I am only an avid gamer who loves them strongly and enjoys playing with them both on the screen and in my writings. I get nothing out of it besides the joy of writing, squealing and generally discussing with others how amazing they are. The continuation of this story is dedicated to my reviewer, AirGuitaringKlavier. Thank you so much for your kind words. I really didn't think I'd get anyone to review on this story. It looks like this will be making my 8059 story take the backseat. ;; And they still managed to make it into this story! The song mentioned is "Oretachi no Joy", Yamamoto and Gakudera's character song from Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Love it, love them, and love this. Or at least I hope. Enjoy.

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Middle of the night, Duo felt the nagging feeling of being unaware of his surroundings, which he disliked. It was too tight, he realized with a start, trying to struggle against the feeling of being trapped in the dark. Pressing against his back, was a firm, but cushioned barrier and in front of him, something warm and moving, trapped him in, pushing him further down into the fluffy material. Stifling a growl, he reached up to do what he did best: fight it off. Then the fog lifted, and he remembered the ridiculous circumstances that left him on the couch, with Shen's arms draped over him, his pack pressed into the couch cushions. He was still thinking about whether or not he should remove the arms that possessively trapped him in, just to get something to satisfy his late night hunger. Seeing as he had fallen asleep suddenly last night without eating, he was starving.

But when he looked at the soft, dreaming expression on Shen's face, he realized that he didn't have the power to do that to him. He probably never did. The arm that had been so still a second ago suddenly began tracing patterns in the cover of his hair, which, to his disdain, he realized that Shen had let down without so much as a word of permission from his mouth. Then again, when the memory returned to him, he realized that now probably wasn't the time to go about fighting with Shen. After all, he had worked so hard to contain his anger. He hadn't even lectured. Not because he was any more okay with it than he usually was. The slightest things made him upset when it came to Duo's well being now and while it usually didn't get in the way, it sometimes felt a bit, well, stifling. Until he remembered why that was, that is. As soon as he remembered that it was an act of love, he couldn't really fight a reason like that.

Yet it was getting worse and worse over time. Duo thought it would hit it's worst when Shen finally admitted his strong feelings of love for Duo, and yet, it didn't peak there; it only seemed to continue upwards. Was there anything beyond love? He didn't have the right to speculate on that. Only, he knew that he disliked the darkness around him and he hated being rendered helpless. It was a feeling of complete evil he got, when the world reached it darkest, and even the dark shadows were eaten by the swamping darkness. And the only thing that could alleviate it was light. In this place, right now, he couldn't see any. The windows were still covered, blocking out the moon and trapping in the darkness, it seemed. Duo shook his head to remove those thoughts. After all, those kinds of thoughts were pointless. And Shen's hands were becoming more and more distracting, leaving a pleasant tingling sensation wherever they touched him. It wasn't a fleeting feeling, but rather one that seemed to burn into him. It left him wanting to touch Shen too, if only to make sure he was still there; not engulfed by the dark, dark night.

Finding his right arm had gone to sleep under the weight of his upper body, he reached out with his left, playing with the small blond strands that stuck out in all directions. He chuckled lightly, thinking of how even his hair seemed to suit him so well. Just like his hair, Shen seemed to be going in all directions; sometimes you never knew what would come next. It was exhausting to be kept guessing constantly, but at least things never became boring. As long as he was around Shen, he didn't have to worry about getting lost in his thoughts too far. With Shen there was always something new to look at; never enough time to dwell too long. As long as Shen was well and moving, he kept things light and energetic. He wasn't always right, and some of the things he did were just plain stupid, but after it was said and done, he was still the same well-meaning Shen. Or at least that was the image that would always come to mind for him. There had been a time he could have seen more darkness in Shen's personality. But now it was almost impossible.

Now with the way he fought for people. It was the most amazing feeling he could recall; being fought for, and more importantly, considering that it was Shen fighting for him, a warmth swelled up further inside of him and he leaned down, using his hand to trace similar patterns to Shen's own over his cheek. Despite his training, the skin on his face was still soft, unlike that on his hands. But it was all the beautiful, healthy shade. Sighing, Duo wondered if such feelings could be considered healthy on his part. It was like he would consider ripping out his heart or giving up his soul if it was for this person before him. And on counts that sounded foolish. So why did knowing that not change the fact that he would probably do it in an instant if the occasion arose? He mentally kicked himself for thinking such dumb things. It was the darkness; the intimate touches in the shadow-less world they were in, that made these thoughts rise. When the light came back up, he would be thinking straight again.

A small strangled gasp escaped Shen's lips; the warm breath fluttered against Duo's skin, making him shudder involuntarily. It wasn't a bad sound; he didn't frown in the slightest, so he could only wonder what had him making such a strange noise. He looked at his own hand, watching it moving without direction over his skin, letting his nails lightly tease him with a smile on his soft, effeminate face. Being intimate with Shen like this was something dream-like. It was only the dull throbbing in his chest and lungs that reminded him exactly why this situation came to pass, why he was starving, and why Shen was clinging to him; covering him so desperately at this exact time. There didn't appear to be any other reason. It had been the fight; or more specifically, his total failure in regards to that fight, that made this happen. That wasn't so bad. Maybe he wouldn't mind a few more failures in his life. To see the way that his pain effected Shen made warm thoughts surface, and hot, passionate feelings threaten to take down the barriers he set on his heart.

In the darkness, there were words softly whispered in time, by Shen, startling the black haired man, who could only listen, completely enraptured. "The feelings I shoved towards you, when you were acting preposterous and reckless. Now, yes-- with a direct attack-- show you, tell you, that I want us to understand each other, never running away from rains and storms." It was hard to imagine such words coming out in the midsts of sleep, until Duo realized that he was singing. Albeit a little badly, but singing none the less. Probably to some popular, upbeat song that Duo wouldn't know or understand. But the words found a way to settle themselves in his heart, with a feeling that those words were meant for him, repeated, regurgitated or no. Selfishly, he wanted them to be the mirror of Shen's heart; wanted them to be aimed at him; only at him.

It was okay to ask such things, wasn't it? Regardless of goodness, he would continue to ask for that one thing which he could no longer live without. Feeling his stomach churning, he made a scrunched face and begged it silent. It was okay if it hurt a bit. He just wanted to lay here and be. That was enough. "Eh?" Shen groaned, rubbing his eyes, blind in the dark, trying to make out the shape of the man in front of him. "I thought I heard music." Duo smiled lightly, shaking his head.

"I heard it too."


End file.
